Written questions by Obese-Jecty.

What artillery ammunition has been supplied to Ukraine.

Since the beginning of the conflict, we have delivered over 500,000 rounds of artillery ammunition worth over £1.5 billion to Ukraine. With European partners, we are also members of the artillery capability coalition which delivers immediate support to Ukraine and also has a long-term plan to support Ukraine’s ambitions for a NATO-interoperable future force.Due to operational security reasons, I am unable to give a breakdown of types.This Government is steadfast in our commitment to support Ukraine for as long as it takes. We are committed to giving Ukraine more military support than ever before this year, with a £4.5 billion boost for Ukraine in 2025.

Whether he has a long-term (a) maintenance and (b) repair plan for armoured vehicles gifted to Ukraine beyond the training package by Babcock.

For reasons of security, I hope the hon. Gentleman will understand that I cannot go into specific details. Maintaining, repairing and overhauling (MRO) both systems granted in kind and Ukrainian indigenous systems is critical to Ukraine’s ability to repel the illegal Russian invasion and deter any future aggression. In recognition of this, through Task Force Hirst we have created a framework to scale this support in line with Ukrainian priorities, both nationally and internationally, as seen with the recent announcement of in-country MRO of the Archer system with Swedish partners. We are working closely with a number of companies such as BAE Systems, Babcock and others, together with local Ukrainian companies, to scale this support nationally and with wider partners. Conducting this work in-country, ensures that critical military equipment is returned to the frontline for use by the Ukrainian Armed Forces quicker and more efficiently, so that Ukraine can continue the fight against this unprovoked Russian aggression.

If he will publish the outcomes of his meeting with the Ukraine Defence Contact Group on 12 February 2025.

At the Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UDCG) co-chaired by the Defence Secretary, the UK is taking a leading role in ensuring coordination and coherence of international support to Ukraine. We saw almost 50 nations and partners standing together to support Ukraine in February 2025. The UK Ministry of Defence published the official press release on the February UDCG on gov.uk website, which saw the UK announce a £150 million military support package to Ukraine.

Pursuant to the Answer of 25 March 2025 to Question 39639 on Warrior Vehicles, which of these units are due to transition to Boxer.

The Army is currently undergoing a combined programme of work to ensure our Land Forces will have the lethality, protection and mobility to fight and win against any adversary. The outcome of the Strategic Defence Review (SDR) will guide future capability development priorities and it would therefore be inappropriate to comment until the SDR has reported and decisions have been made. On current plans, the first Boxer unit will be the 1st Battalion, the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.

What the total cost to the public purse was of personal injury compensation payments in each year from 2014-15 to 2023-24 broken down by (a) type of injury, (b) arm/service, (c) gender, (d) number of claimants, (e) total cost and (f) minimum/maximum payout.

The tables below show the total amounts paid out under the War Pensions Scheme (WPS) and Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) by financial year. Providing the further breakdowns would require information from three different data systems to be combined and individual files to be manually reviewed meaning it could only be provided at a disproportionate cost. Table 1 below provides the total compensation expenditure under the AFCS from 1 April 2014 to the 31 March 2024 by financial year. Allowance Type2014-152015-162016-172017-182018-192019-202020-212021-222022-232023-24Total Compensation Payable (£'000,000)72.980.780.687.889.890.084.3104.0127.9147.8Lump Sum Payments46.750.644.246.043.338.730.138.649.354.7Guaranteed Income Payments19.423.227.933.536.941.244.655.267.276.6Survivors' Guaranteed Income Payments6.87.08.58.39.610.19.610.211.416.5Table 2 below provides the total compensation expenditure under the WPS from 1 April 2014 to the 31 March 2024 by financial year. Allowance Type2014-152015-162016-172017-182018-192019-202020-212021-222022-232023-24Total Compensation Payable (£'000,000)837.6794.8764.8723.2697.3680.3652.4622.5606.5633.4Disablement Pensioners569.4548.7541.2517506.8501.2482.1462.1462505.6War Widow(er)s268.3246223.6206.2190.5179.2170.3160.5144.6127.8 Figures presented in these tables include accrued expenditure where a claim was awarded in the last few days but was processed and paid after year end. Therefore, expenditure figures may differ to the amount of actual monies paid out in the financial year. Figures have been rounded to the nearest £100,000. Therefore, totals and sub-totals may not equal the sum of their parts.

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2025 to Question 38727 on MOD Ashchurch: Vehicles, if he will list all vehicles held at MOD Ashchurch including their readiness state by (a) type of vehicle and (b) timescale to be made operational.

The Ministry of Defence does not routinely disclose a breakdown of the location of equipment capabilities, and the operational readiness of our fleets, in the interests of safeguarding security and operational effectiveness.

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2025 to Question 37763, whether he has had recent discussions with Cabinet colleagues on the potential purchase of F-35B aircraft.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to Question 37763 on 20 March 2025.

What steps he is taking to meet the NATO industrial capacity expansion pledge.

The UK strongly supports the NATO Industrial Capacity Expansion Pledge, which commits Allies to strengthening transatlantic defence industrial cooperation, and accelerating the growth of our defence industry. The Ministry of Defence is taking steps to meet the Pledge, including promoting greater joint procurement among NATO Allies through our NATO Multinational Procurement Initiatives.

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2025 to Question 38195 on NATO: Industry, what his Department's planned timetable is for delivering the new Defence Industrial Strategy.

This Government is committed to bringing forward a Defence Industrial Strategy which ensures the imperatives of national security, and a high-growth economy are aligned. The Statement of Intent outlined that the new Defence Industrial Strategy will be published in late-Spring 2025.

What the definition is of a (a) basic and (b) specialist user in the context of the tactical hearing protection system.

The Tactical Hearing Protection System programme defines the Basic User (BU) requirement as those British Army, Royal Navy, Royal Marine and Royal Air Force personnel who need hearing protection for the full range of military tasks, including basic weapon handling and firing, but have a lesser requirement for situational awareness. They are unlikely to be in close proximity to the firing of support weaponry. The BU requirement applies to most Combat Support and Combat Service Support personnel and is used as a backup for the Dismounted Close Combat (DCC) user. The DCC user is defined as those combat arms personnel who are or could be routinely exposed to high rates of fire, at close range, from a variety of weapons, such as small arms, medium- or heavy-calibre weapons including grenades, hand-held missiles and missile launchers. They have a requirement for continuous situational awareness in all environments. The Specialist User (SU) is also a combat arms soldier, but differs from the DCC user in that the weapon systems they use, such as mortars, heavy machine guns, snipers, and anti-structures munitions, are so loud that single-layer protection will not suffice. The SU requires dual-layer protection and accepts that situational awareness may have to be reduced.

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2025 to Question 38440 on Armed Forces: Protective Clothing, which of those are included within the tactical hearing protection system.

The Tactical Hearing Protection System includes the following equipment sets:Surefire EP4ComTac XP/XPIInvisio S10/X5

What the earliest date is for when a new fast-jet trainer will be brought into service by the Royal Air Force.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to him on 3 December 2024 to Question 15292.

What assessment he has made of the benefits of purchasing Boeing E7 Wedgetail aircraft.

The E-7 Wedgetail is the most capable airborne early warning and control platform in operation today and has the growth path to match the expected threat over the next 20 years. The Wedgetail is capable of providing situational awareness of the battlespace and this cutting-edge aircraft will be a force enabler for the UK Armed Forces, our allies and NATO.

Pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2025 to Question 37371 on F-35 Aircraft: Procurement, whether he has considered taking steps to start procuring the F-35A variant in future tranches.

I refer the hon Member to the answer I gave him on 20 March 2025 to Question 37763.

Pursuant to his Answer of 18 March 2025 to Question 37774 on Armed Forces: Protective Clothing and his Answer of 11 March to Question 36209 on Armed Forces: Protective Clothing what level of protection is provided by (a) Peltor Comtac XPI and (b) Peltor General Service ear muffs.

I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave him on 11 March 2025, to Question 36209, and on 20 March 2025, to Question 37772.

Pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2025 to Question 37371 on F-35 Aircraft: Procurement, what steps he is taking to procure additional F-35 aircraft.

I refer the hon Member to the answer I gave him on 20 March 2025 to Question 37763.

Pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2025 to Question 37374 on Warrior Vehicles, which regiments are currently (a) equipped with and (b) trained to use the Warrior Infantry Fighting Vehicles; and in which roles.

The following regiments currently operate the Warrior Infantry Fighting Vehicle: Regiments Operating WarriorRole1st Battalion, Royal Regiment of FusiliersArmoured Infantry1st Battalion, the Mercian RegimentArmoured Infantry5th Battalion, the RiflesArmoured Infantry1st Battalion, the Royal WelshArmoured InfantryThe Royal Dragoon GuardsArmoured CavalryThe King’s Royal HussarsReconnaissanceThe Queen’s Royal HussarsReconnaissanceThe Royal Tank RegimentReconnaissance The Warrior IFV is a versatile capability that can be used to provide various roles. There are no additional regiments that are trained to use the capability.

What assessment he has made of the potential economic impact of constructing F-35 aircraft in the UK.

The benefit of procuring UK F-35 aircraft from the USA is the value derived from the economies of scale. UK industry makes a significant contribution to the F-35 programme, where it is estimated that at least 15% by value of every aircraft manufactured is produced in the UK. Establishing an F-35 final assembly and check out facility to construct F-35 aircraft in the UK at this stage of the programme would drive significant costs for the UK F-35 programme.

What his planned timetable is for the Challenger 2 modernisation programme.

Through the Armour Main Battle Tank (Armour MBT) programme, 148 existing Challenger 2 platforms will be upgraded to Challenger 3 standard. I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Minister for the Armed Forces (Mr Pollard) on 11 October 2024 to Question 5407 to the hon. Member for East Wiltshire (Mr Kruger), which explains that the Initial Operating Capability and Full Operating Capability for the Armour MBT programme is 2027 and 2030 respectively.

What is the difference in (a) purchase and (b) running cost between the (i) F-35A and (ii) F-35B variants.

The purchase price of an F-35A is estimated to be 15% less than the cost of an F-35B.The running cost of an F-35A is estimated to be 8% less than an F-35B.